Consumer Reports No Longer Recommends the Tesla Model 3 (cnn.com)

Consumer Reports is pulling its recommendation of the Tesla Model 3, citing reliability issues with the car. "Tesla buyers are more likely to be satisfied with their car than customers of any other brand, according to Consumer Reports," reports CNN. "Yet the publication says many customers reported problems with the Model 3, including loose body trim and glass defects." From the report: "Consumers expect their cars to last -- and not be in the repair shop. That's why reliability is so important," said Jake Fisher, senior director of automotive testing at Consumer Reports. Tesla pointed to its overall customer satisfaction rating from Consumer Reports and said it has corrected many of the problems found in the survey. "We take feedback from our customers very seriously and quickly implement improvements any time we hear about issues," said the company statement. It said the survey was conducted from July through September, "so the vast majority of these issues have already been corrected through design and manufacturing improvements, and we are already seeing a significant improvement in our field data." Last May, the product testing website failed to give the Model 3 a recommendation due to issues with braking, but ultimately reversed its decision after Tesla released a firmware update improving the car's breaking distance by nearly 20 feet.

Comments

1.0 Problems

[locater16]

As usual with any product, beware version 1.0
Any number of problems tend to crop up, I'm going on memory but I'm fairly certain this happened with other Tesla Models when they were first introduced as well. Those problems were sorted out over time, but buyer beware for being an "early adopter".

Re:1.0 Problems

[AmiMoJo]

The boot (trunk in US English) lets water in when you open it after its been raining too. It's pretty bad, all the water on the rear window rolls down into the opening.

The auto wipers are still very unreliable. They work okay for some people, but not for many others. Tesla use a camera and AI to detect rain, rather than a $5 rain sensor like everyone else. Also the only way to control the wipers is via the touchscreen.

The screen crashes some times. When it crashes the wipers stop too. Not ideal in heavy rain.

As TFA notes there are still a lot of fit and finish and especially paint issues too. Tesla concentrated on ramping up production rather than quality. If these were $10k cars they would get away with it, but people expect a lot more for $50k, and a hell of a lot more for $80k. Well, even $10k Hyundais are generally better in that regard.

Re:1.0 Problems

[whoever57]

The boot (trunk in US English) lets water in when you open it after its been raining too. It's pretty bad, all the water on the rear window rolls down into the opening.

Many other cars suffer from this problem.

Also the only way to control the wipers is via the touchscreen.

False. There is a button at the end of the left stalk.

I will agree that the auto-wiper function needs work. IMHO, good and bad performance seems to be related to crosswind.

The screen crashes some times.

Never happened on my Model 3. I think there are some Model 3s with hardware issues that cause the crashes. Most people don't see any crashes, but a very small number of people see lots of crashes (my impression from the forums).

As TFA notes there are still a lot of fit and finish and especially paint issues too.

Again, not on my Model 3. I think the fit and finish issues were mostly on early Model 3s and now people are more critical. Take a look at the creases on other cars as you drive: you will see many cars where the creases don't line up properly.

Re:1.0 Problems

[viperidaenz]

Many other cars have a channel around the inside of the boot lid that catches the water that runs off the lid when you open it, draining it out under the car or over the rear bumper so you don't flood inside the boot.

Re:1.0 Problems

[im_thatoneguy]

Many other cars have a channel around the inside of the boot lid that catches the water that runs off the lid when you open it,

So does the Model 3. But it's hip to ceramic coat their entire model 3 aka put on a full body hydrophobic coating. What happens is the water runs off so fast that it shoots several inches across the gap into the trunk (boot) and across the channel.

A stock Model 3 doesn't have this issue because the water doesn't evil kenivel the gap at highspeed.

Re:1.0 Problems

[drinkypoo]

Many other cars have a channel around the inside of the boot lid that catches the water that runs off the lid when you open it,

My 1998 Audi A8 has the same problem, and that was a flagship vehicle built by an experienced automaker. The gutter is small and easily catches crap which affects its operation, so if you're not garaging the vehicle, you can easily get a bunch of water in the trunk. My 1982 MBZ 300SD is much better. Tesla is in good company here.

It is Consumer Reports after all

[Ol Olsoc]

I've given less credence to their reports over time. There are some vehicles they simply don't like.

Jeeps come to mind. I'm on my third one now (still have two) and happy with them. They do what I want my vehicles to do, and I've put a lot of trouble free miles on them.

Re:Intake manifold

[toadlife]

This specially applies to most cars with transversally placed V6 engines.

Yep. In order to save $300 on labor, I replaced the spark plugs on my 2004 Hyundai Sonata, which involved taking the intake manifold off, which involved taking a bunch of other pieces around manifold off.

I did it, but it was a nightmare and in the end I wished I'd spent the $300.

Consumer Report Gods

[maxrate]

I have a Model 3 - picked it up June 2018. I'm in Canada, only thing wrong with the car is cold battery issue and had some issues with the charging port freezing. Brought it into Telsa, they fixed it in 2 hours. Wife drives almost exactly 100 miles daily, we are saving a LOT in fuel. I believe our electrical bill at the house has gone up by about $100 a month vs the $500+ in fuel we were spending on her previous ride. The car steering is tight, accelerates amazingly, refreshing interior, a pleasure to drive. Definitely worth the minor (very minor) trouble we have experienced with it. Already 18,000 miles on the car, feels the same since day one. Can't say the same about my Chevy Tahoe. 2016, 38,000 miles stupid issues all over the place. Cold battery a big deal? No it does not affect my wifes 100 mile commute. When cold, doesn't accelerate as quickly (still plenty better than most cars) and takes longer to charge. I score the car an easy 9 outta 10. Thinking about a model X now too.

TentTech

[JBMcB]

When your automated assembly line fails and you rely on out-of-process-import-workers-from-another-line-and-final-assembly-in-tents technology, you are going to run into quality problems.